'Cuse Travels to Virginia Tech

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The No. 9 Orange (8-1-0, 2-1-0 ACC) travels to Blacksburg, Va. to take on Virginia Tech (7-3-0, 2-1-0 ACC) on Saturday, Oct. 4 at 7 p.m at Thompson Field. Both teams are looking for their third conference victory of the season, and to remain among the leaders in their respective divisions. Syracuse is currently tied with Clemson for second in the Atlantic Division. The Hokies are knotted with Duke for second place in the Coastal.

SIZZLING START
Syracuse's clean sheet versus Virginia on Sept. 27 raised its season total to eight shutouts in nine games. The Orange has allowed just one goal so far this season, the fewest through the first nine games of any season in team history. At 8-1-0, the 2014 campaign marks the best nine-game start for the Orange since 1984 when it began the year with nine wins in its first 10 contests.

DOMINATING DEFENSE
Syracuse is tied with Michigan State for the national lead in fewest goals allowed this season (1) and owns the nation's top goals-against average at 0.11. In addition, Syracuse's .971 save percentage and .890 shutout percentage are tops in the country. Syracuse has limited its opponents to 74 shots in nine games - only 8.2 per contest. Goalie Alex Bono leads the NCAA in goals-against average (0.11) and save percentage (.971). The Orange's eight shutouts already ties for seventh on the school single-season record list.

ORANGE EARNS HIGHEST RANKING IN RECENT HISTORY
Syracuse is No. 9 in this week's NSCAA poll. The ranking is three spots below the highest ranking in program history (No. 6), which was achieved during the 1984 season.

HIGH RPI
The first NCAA Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) was released on Monday, Sept. 29 and Syracuse was fourth behind Notre Dame, UC-Irvine and Davidson.

SCOUTING THE HOKIES
The Hokies have a very well-balanced attack. Four different players have multiple goals, including Ricardo John who leads the team with four goals on 19 shots. Som Essome is the club's top scorer with 11 points (3 goals, 5 assists). Essome and John have combined for four game winning goals in 2014.

Ben Lundgaard has started seven games in goal, including the last three. He has 33 saves, while conceding eight goals. Lundgaard is 5-2-0 with four shutouts. Ben Lockler has also seen time between the posts, starting three games and recording a 0.67 goals-against average with one shutout.

Head coach Mike Brizendine is 32-59-13 during his time at Virginia Tech. Brizendine spent 10 years as an assistant coach, including five with the Hokies, before taking over the program in 2009.

THE VIRGINIA TECH SERIES
VT has won all four meetings against Syracuse, including a 2-1 overtime decision in Blacksburg last season. The first three pairings occurred when the teams were members of the BIG EAST Conference and last season's matchup was the first between the schools since 2003. The Hokies have outscored the Orange in the series, 10-2.

UP NEXT ...
Syracuse welcomes Albany to the SU Soccer Stadium on Tuesday, Oct. 7 at 7 p.m. Admission to the match is free. The contest will be televised live locally on Time Warner Cable SportsChannel and available nationwide on ESPN3.

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Players Mentioned

Alex Bono

Syracuse University Athletics